Vaishali wins Women Grand Swiss for a second time in a row, Lagno reaches Candidates
9/16/2025 – Vaishali Rameshbabu won her second consecutive Women Grand Swiss, scoring 8/11 and edging Kateryna Lagno on tiebreaks to take first place. Both players secured qualification to the 2026 Wo
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Vaishali and Lagno keep things under control
Vaishali Rameshbabu claimed her second consecutive Women Grand Swiss title, scoring 8/11 points and edging Kateryna Lagno on the first tiebreak criterion - the average rating of opponents, discounting the lowest-rated one. Both Vaishali and Lagno thus qualified for the 2026 Women Candidates Tournament, joining the five players who had already secured spots through the Women World Cup and Women Grand Prix.
Vaishali and Lagno entered the final round tied for first after Vaishali crucial victory over Mariya Muzychuk in round ten. Going into the last day of play, the Indian grandmaster was the favourite to take tournament victory thanks to her superior tiebreak score. Paired with second seed Tan Zhongyi with black, Vaishali faced a challenging task. Out of a Symmetrical English, Tan gained a slight pull in a queenless middlegame, but Vaishali defended accurately, choosing the right moment to sacrifice a pawn and steer the game into a defensible endgame with rooks and opposite-coloured bishops.
The game ended in a 43-move draw, enough to secure her shared first place.
By the time Vaishali drew, Lagno had already finished her game on board two. Playing White against Ulviyya Fataliyeva, Lagno kept control throughout in a quiet 30-move encounter that also ended peacefully, ensuring that both leaders reached the 8/11 mark.
Two players from the chasing pack still had a chance to catch the leaders. Song Yuxin, playing black against Irina Krush, never obtained winning chances and signed a draw after 30 moves. Bibisara Assaubayeva, however, had a golden opportunity to join the leading duo. Facing top seed Anna Muzychuk with white, the Kazakh star obtained a completely winning position and seemed on course to catch up. On move 47, however, Assaubayeva blundered with 47.Rxc2
The missed opportunity meant that Assaubayeva finished on 7½/11 points and had to settle for third place.
Assaubayeva disappointment is compounded by her earlier miss against Lagno in round nine, where she was also on the verge of victory before letting the advantage slip in the technical phase. Despite this, the 21-year-old finished the event undefeated and is now the frontrunner to claim the final spot in the Candidates via the 2024–25 Women Events cycle.
2025-09-16
By
Anushka Tripathi
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